bug#42663: 28.0.50; rectangle-mark-mode does not behave as documented when transient-mark-mode is off

[Sean Whitton]

Hello,

On Sat 25 Dec 2021 at 09:55AM +02, Eli Zaretskii wrote:

>> --- a/doc/emacs/killing.texi
>> +++ b/doc/emacs/killing.texi
>> @@ -923,11 +923,11 @@ Rectangles
>>  @findex rectangle-mark-mode
>>    The command @kbd{C-x @key{SPC}} (@code{rectangle-mark-mode}) toggles
>>  whether the region-rectangle or the standard region is highlighted
>> -(first activating the region if necessary).  When this mode is enabled,
>> -commands that resize the region (@kbd{C-f}, @kbd{C-n} etc.)@: do
>> -so in a rectangular fashion, and killing and yanking operate on the
>> -rectangle.  @xref{Killing}.  The mode persists only as long as the
>> -region is active.
>> +(first activating the region if necessary, unless Transient Mark mode
>> +is off).  When this mode is enabled, commands that resize the region
>> +(@kbd{C-f}, @kbd{C-n} etc.)@: do so in a rectangular fashion, and
>> +killing and yanking operate on the rectangle.  @xref{Killing}.  The
>> +mode persists until the next time the region becomes inactive.
>
> The new text is IMO not accurate, because toggling the mode doesn't
> depend on Transient Mark mode.  It's the "active mark" state that
> depends on Transient Mark mode, in the sense that the mark doesn't
> automatically become active when Transient Mark mode is off and
> set-mark-command or push-mark is called.
>
> So I think a better documentation change would be to say that
> rectangle mark mode only works when the mark is active, and point to
> "Disabled Transient Mark" node of the manual for how to do that when
> Transient Mark mode is off.  This should probably be a separate
> paragraph, after the current text.

Yes, that's better, thank you.

Revised patch enclosed.

-- 
Sean Whitton

v2-0001-Improve-rectangle-mark-mode-documentation-regardi.patch
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